An explosive competition, the Valorant Masters Santiago competition tips off this month (well, technically February 28th) and features the best in the world going head to head. This is a global tournament organized by publisher Riot Games following the kickoff of the 2026 Champions Tour (VCT). Per sources, the tournament is being held from February 28th to March 15, 2026 in Santiago, Chile. Additionally, the first annual Masters was expanded to twelve teams, with the top three teams from each International League competing. Organized as a swiss-system group stage tournament with Double Elimination Playoffs, this competition has a purse of $1,000,000. In an interesting development, current Kickoffs Third Seed, NRG, is the current favorite in this competition although it is loaded with very talented teams.
In this article, SBS will be going over the latest gaming news and notes coming from the world of esports and also some other notes and info you can only find at SBS.
| Favorites to Win the 2026 Valorant Masters Santiago |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| NRG | +117 | +117 | +117 |
| BBL Esports | +335 | +335 | +335 |
| G2 Esports | +567 | +567 | +567 |
| Gentle Mates | +900 | +900 | +900 |
An American esports organization based in Los Angeles, NRG has competitive teams in a variety of leagues and a number of streamers on Twitch. In terms of Valorant, in October 2025, NRG won Champions 2025. NRG was nominated for “Best Esports Team” at The Game Awards 2025, but did not win; their star player brawk was also nominated as “Best Esports Athlete.” Also earlier last year, NRG announced that they would be moving coach Bonkar and player Verno to the reserve roster for the remainder of the 2025 season. The same day, they announced the arrival of Brock “brawk” Somerhalder and coach Michael “MikesHD” Hockom to the active roster in place of Verno and Bonkar, to compete alongside the rest of the active core. However, Verno departed from the organization in March of last year, the article noted.
Last year, BBL Esports had an up and down campaign with some solid outings. This includes a third place finish at the VCT 2025: EMEA Stage 2 competition and also a fifth place finish Esports World Cup 2025. Prior to that, in 2024, the group won a couple of B-Tier competitions in Monsters Reloaded 2024 and also the Superdome Egypt 2023 competition. A Turkish professional esports organization located in Istanbul, BBL Esports was founded in July 2020. With this being perhaps the biggest competition of the year to date for BBL, stakes are high and it looks like oddsmakers like the look of this rising organization.
Another squad with a lot of strong competitive history, G2 Esports has a loaded roster and has seen some success on the Valorant scene at various times. Recently, the squad locked down a couple of outstanding victories last year like at the Red Bull Home Ground 2025 event along with the S-Tier VCT 2025: Americas Stage 2 tournament. This accrued the team a massive combined $150,000 prize purse. Also in 2025, the squad took home second place at the Valorant Masters Bangkok event and a fourth-place finish at the Valorant Masters Toronto 2025 competition. Indeed this competition though would be a great jumping off point for 2026 for them to see how far this year will go in terms of overall momentum throughout 2026.
Rounding out the list of contenders, the Paris Gentle Mates, formerly known as Los Angeles Guerrillas, are a professional esports team based in, you guessed it, Paris, France. The Guerrillas were formerly owned by Kroenke Sports and Entertainment from its founding in 2019 to 2024. Earlier this year, the squad notched a second place finish at the VCT 2026: EMEA Kickoff event and definitely put the other teams on notice they are not messing around in 2026. Last year, the Gentle Mates won the BtcTurk GameFest event which was a B-Tier competition in late June of 2025. Though it remains to be seen where they stack up in the overall field, do not overlook this squad from France as they aim for another huge title. With competition already underway, this could be a darkhorse team in Santiago.
Truly a stacked competition, NRG has jumped out oddly enough per oddsmakers in the early goings of this competition. Of course, there is still much that can be decided, but many are aware that these tournaments contain all kinds of up’s and down’s. Nonetheless, NRG has shown in the past that they can win big events and have the ability to back up all kinds of competition thanks to a strong roster of talent.
After you are all up to speed in relation to the newest gambling news coming from the world of esports, make sure to check out the excellent array of info for you over at SBS. Of course, for those who are interested and qualified, the payment methods rundown is a must-read resource that goes over a variety of different options for patrons from traditional banking routes to crypto and more. Moreover, for those on the go, the best betting apps breakdown is a fantastic resource for mobile betting and how you can stay eligible while on the go. Finally, regarding higher-stakes gaming, the VIP sports betting sites guide is a great page to check out. If you are eligible and interested, this page goes over the pro’s and con’s of VIP wagering and how it might make sense for you.
About the Author
Chris Boline is a Reno-based business development professional and freelance sports writer with over a decade of experience covering the NBA G League, Los Angeles Chargers, and national football and basketball. His expertise spans the NFL, NBA, UFC, boxing, golf, and motorsports, along with topical news, marketing, and promotional content. A proud University of Nevada graduate, Chris earned both his BS in Management & Economics (2015) and MBA (2023). He is active in the Reno community, serving on boards such as the Nevada Sagebrush Alumni Chapter, NCET, and the College of Business Alumni Association, where he was past president (2022–23). Notable honors include: - Two-time University of Nevada Alumni Chapter of the Year honoree (2017, 2021) - 2021 NCET Professional Services Organization of the Year (with TAC) - 2016–17 Reno Bighorns MVP, awarded by the Sacramento Kings - Nevada Press Association Award for Best Sports Column (2015) - Former Editor-in-Chief of The Nevada Sagebrush Chris blends his passion for sports with a strong background in sales, marketing, and community engagement.
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